Image Processing Method and Image Processing Apparatus for Registering Additional Information of Image Information

ABSTRACT

An information processing apparatus for registering additional information of an image in a storage unit reads additional information items of an input image, sets a check item condition for additional information, matches at least one of the additional information items against a corresponding additional information item registered in the storage unit according to the check item condition, and controls whether to register the additional information items in the storage unit depending on a result of the matching.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/040,660 filed Jan. 21, 2005 which claims the benefit of JapanesePatent Application No. 2004-029471 filed Feb. 5, 2004. U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/040,660 and Japanese Patent Application No.2004-029471 are hereby incorporated by reference herein in theirentirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to image processing methods and imageprocessing apparatuses for registering additional information of imageinformation, and in particular to a data matching method wheninformation is registered. More particularly, the present inventionrelates to a method for registering information in a medical imagedatabase of a medical network system.

2. Description of the Related Art

The recent advent of digital X-ray apparatuses has promoted therecording of X-ray images in computers as digital data. Typicaldigitized image data has additional information such as patientinformation and examination information. A database system for managingimages based on these items of information has also been developed. Morespecifically, a new diagnostic imaging workflow is realized, where thedatabase is searched for a patient image based on additional informationof the patient image, such as a patient ID, and the patient image isdisplayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT) or a liquid crystal display fordiagnosis.

A general medical image database system called the Picture Archiving andCommunication System (PACS) includes an image generation apparatus(modality), a file server, a database, etc., in which these componentsare interconnected via a network. The modality generates a medicaldigital image and assigns the generated medical digital image additionalinformation, such as patient information and examination information, inaccordance with the Digital Image Communication in Medicine (DICOM)standard as an image header. The generated image data is transferred viathe network and saved in the file server, and the information in theimage header is registered in the database.

In such a medical image database system, a plurality of images can havethe same information, such as the patient name and patient ID, in theimage headers. More specifically, if a patient with a patient ID “001”is examined on different days, the same patient ID and patient name areassigned to the headers of the images generated on those days. Theseimages are registered in the database as examination data with thepatient ID “001”. In other words, the information in the image headersregistered in the database is identified according to the patient.

In such a system, however, an operator's typing error can causeincorrect information to be registered if the system is not structuredto only accept correct information.

Say that a patient name “Taro Yamada” is registered for the firstradiographic examination of a patient. If “Yamada” is registered as thepatient name for the second radiographic examination of the samepatient, the patient name is changed from “Taro Yamada” to “Yamada” inthe system, if the system allows patient names to be overwritten. Thisis problematic in that a search for images of the patient with a patientname “Taro Yamada” fails.

In order to overcome this problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.6-187381 describes a system for informing the user of any change in dataregistered in the database. In short, the user can recognize changedinformation in the database.

The method described in the Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-187381,however, identifies data in the database by IDs, and is not capable ofpreventing incorrect data from being registered in the database, if theoperator enters an incorrect ID.

Now, say that “Hanako Yamada” with a patient ID “15234” was examined inAugust 2003, and the patient information of “Hanako Yamada” wasregistered in the database. Furthermore, it is presumed that when “TaroYamada” with a patient ID “12345” is examined in September 2003, he ismistakenly registered with a patient ID “15234”. In short, the patientID “15234” is registered as additional information of “Taro Yamada”.Under this presumption, the information of the images acquired for “TaroYamada” in September 2003 is registered in the database as informationabout “Hanako Yamada” with the patient ID “15234”. As a result, a searchfor an image acquired in September 2003 with a patient name “TaroYamada” and a patient ID “12345” for diagnostic imaging fails.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is intended to prevent image information frombeing associated with incorrect information when the image informationis registered.

The present invention is also intended to efficiently determine whetherinformation to be registered is correct.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an informationprocessing method for registering additional information of an image ina storage unit includes: reading a plurality of additional informationitems of an input image; setting at least one check item condition foradditional information; matching at least one of the plurality ofadditional information items read against a corresponding additionalinformation item registered in the storage unit according to the atleast one check item condition set; and controlling whether to registerin the storage unit the plurality of additional information items readbased on a result of the matching of the at least one of the pluralityof additional information items.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an informationprocessing apparatus for registering additional information of an imagein a storage unit includes: an additional-information reading unit forreading a plurality of additional information items of an input image; acheck-item-condition setting unit for setting at least one check itemcondition for additional information; an additional-information matchingunit for matching at least one of the plurality of additionalinformation items read by the additional-information reading unitagainst a corresponding additional information item registered in thestorage unit according to the at least one check item condition set bythe check-item-condition setting unit; and an additional-informationregistration control unit for controlling whether to register in thestorage unit the plurality of additional information items read by theadditional-information reading unit based on a result of matching of theat least one of the plurality of additional information items.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a control programcauses a computer to execute the above-described information processingmethod.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, acomputer-readable storage medium stores a control program for causing acomputer to execute the above-described information processing method.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, aninformation processing apparatus includes: a reception unit configuredto receive image information having additional information including aplurality of items; a selection unit configured to select at least onerequired item for which information needs to be entered from among theplurality of items and at least one matching item whose informationneeds to match corresponding stored information; a reading unitconfigured to read stored additional information including IDinformation equivalent to ID information included in the received imageinformation; a determination unit configured to make a determination asto whether the information of the selected at least one matching item inthe image information matches corresponding information in the storedadditional information read by the reading unit; and a storage unitconfigured to store the image information by associating the imageinformation with the additional information, if the determination madeby the determination unit indicates that the information of the selectedat least one matching item in the image information matches thecorresponding information in the stored additional information read bythe reading unit.

Further features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments (withreference to the attached drawings).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting the structure of a data registrationsystem according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram depicting a functional structure of a dataregistration system according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the processing from image receptionto data registration according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram depicting one example of a check-item-conditionsetting graphical user interface according to the first embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram depicting one example of various data informationaccording to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example message indicating unsuccessfuldata matching according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 is a system block diagram of a data registration system accordingto a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example message indicating unsuccessfuldata matching according to the second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating part-by-part matching of a patient nameaccording to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 lists examples of delimiters according to the third embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram depicting one example of a check-item-conditionsetting graphical user interface according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram depicting one example of a check-item-conditionsetting graphical user interface according to a fifth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 13A is a diagram depicting one example of a check-item-conditionsetting graphical user interface according to a sixth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 13B includes tables showing combinations of check-item-conditionsaccording to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating the processing performed with acheck-item-condition setting graphical user interface according to thefourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating the processing performed with acheck-item-condition setting graphical user interface according to thefifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating the processing performed with acheck-item-condition setting graphical user interface according to thesixth embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments according to the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting the structure of a data registrationsystem according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

The data registration system according to the first embodiment includesan image generation unit 101, an image reception unit 103, an additionalinformation storing unit 104, and an image storing unit 105. These unitsare interconnected via a network 102.

The image generation unit 101 is generally realized by a diagnosticX-ray system, an X-ray CT scanner, a magnetic resonant imaging (MRI)system, a diagnostic ultrasound system, or a fundus camera. The imagegeneration unit 101 generates medical image data and assigns thegenerated medical digital image additional information, such as patientinformation and examination information, as an image header.

The image reception unit 103 receives via the network 102 the imageprovided with the additional information generated by the imagegeneration unit 101. The image reception unit 103 is realized by ageneral-purpose computer including at least an input device such as amouse and a keyboard and an output device such as a cathode ray tube(CRT) or a liquid crystal display (LCD).

The additional information storing section 104 saves the additionalinformation of the image received in the image reception unit 103. Theadditional information storing section 104 is realized by, for example,a database built in the image reception unit 103. The image storing unit105 saves the image received in the image reception unit 103. The imagestoring unit 105 is realized by, for example, a storage medium such as ahard disk and a non-volatile memory provided in the image reception unit103.

Although the system shown in FIG. 1 includes one image generation unit101, the system may include a plurality of image generation units 101.Furthermore, the additional information storing section 104 and theimage storing unit 105 are not limited to those described in FIG. 1. Theadditional information storing section 104 and the image storing unit105 may be realized by, for example, storage sections in a differentcomputer connected to the image reception unit 103 via a differentnetwork.

The functional structure according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention will now be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting afunctional structure of the data registration system according to thefirst embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the image generation unit 101 includes an imagepickup section 201 for acquiring images. The image generation unit 101further includes a pickup control section 202 for controlling imageacquisition by the image pickup section 201. The pickup control section202 is a terminal including a mouse, a keyboard, and a display unit.

As described above, the image reception unit 103 in FIG. 1 receivesimage data 203 acquired by the image pickup section 201. An additionalinformation reading section 204 reads out patient information andexamination information accompanying the image data 203.

A check item setting section 205 sets check item conditions. Check itemconditions specify the items to be matched against the databaseaccording to certain conditions. A check item storing section 206 storesthe check item conditions set by the check item setting section 205.

A data checking section 207 compares the additional information read outby the additional information reading section 204 with the informationacquired from the additional information storing section 104 based onthe check item conditions stored in the check item storing section 206to determine whether the check item conditions are satisfied.Furthermore, the data checking section 207 includes an interface forenabling communication with the pickup control section 202 so that thedetermination result can be reported to the image generation unit 101.

An additional information storing control section 208 registers in theadditional information storing section 104 the additional informationread out by the additional information reading section 204, if the datachecking section 207 determines that the check item conditions aresatisfied. An image storing control section 209 saves the received imagedata 203 in the image storing unit 105, if the data checking section 207determines that the check item conditions are satisfied.

The above described sequence of processing from image reception to imageregistration will now be described.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the processing from image receptionto image registration according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 3 shows a typical example of processing from imagereception to image registration by the data registration systemaccording to the first embodiment.

First, an X-ray image of a certain patient is generated in the imagegeneration unit 101, and is transferred to the image reception unit 103via the network 102.

In step S301, the image reception unit 103 receives the transferredimage. Then, in step S302, the additional information of the receivedimage is read by the additional information reading section 204. Theadditional information read by the additional information readingsection 204 is patient information such as the patient ID, the patientname, the sex of the patient, and the birth date of the patient.

Next, in step S303, reference is made to the additional informationstoring section 104 for the patient information of the received image.

More specifically, the data checking section 207 checks whether thepatient ID read out in step S302 exists in the additional informationstoring section 104. If the patient ID does not exist, the patient withthe patient ID is registered as a new patient and the flow proceeds tostep S306. If the patient ID exists, the flow proceeds to step S304.

In step S304, the data checking section 207 reads out check itemconditions saved in the check item storing section 206, and compares thepatient information of the received image with the patient informationstored in the additional information storing section 104 based on thecheck item conditions.

In step S305, the result of the comparison is determined. Morespecifically, if the comparison result indicates that the check itemconditions are satisfied, the flow proceeds to step S306. If thecomparison result indicates that the check item conditions are notsatisfied, registration processing is terminated. In this case, thesystem operator is informed of the cause of unsuccessful registration.

More specifically, an error message as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed onthe display unit connected to the pickup control section 202. Details ofthe message in FIG. 6 are described later.

In step S306, the additional information storing control section 208registers the read-out additional information in the additionalinformation storing section 104, and the flow proceeds to step S307.More specifically, the patient information and examination informationread out from the image are registered in the database. Finally in stepS307, the image storing control section 209 registers the received imagein the image storing unit 105 by associating the received image with theadditional information saved in step S306. Check item conditions and thechecking procedure are described in detail below.

The procedure for setting check item conditions will now be describedwith reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing one example of acheck-item-condition setting graphical user interface (hereinafter,referred to as a GUI). This GUI is displayed on the display unit such asa CRT and a liquid crystal display connected to the image reception unit103.

The GUI shown in FIG. 4 includes checkboxes 401 to 406 for setting checkitem conditions and an operation button 407 for confirming the checkitem conditions. To check the checkboxes 401 to 406, the operator movesa pointer 41 with a mouse onto a desired checkbox and clicks thecheckbox. To uncheck, the operator clicks the checked checkbox.

The checkboxes 401 to 403 arranged in the upper part of the GUI in FIG.4 are used to specify required entries of the patient information. Inthe example shown in FIG. 4, the checkbox 401 for the patient name andthe checkbox 402 for the birth date are checked. In other words, thepatient name and the birth date are required entries and must be enteredas additional information of the received image to register thecorresponding image data. In short, data checking fails if the patientname or the birth date is not entered.

On the other hand, the checkbox 403 for the sex is unchecked. That is,the sex of the patient as additional information of the received imagecan be omitted without causing data registration to fail.

The checkbox 404 for the patient name and the checkbox 405 for the birthdate are checked. This indicates that the patient name and the birthdate only are matched against the database, and the sex of the patientis not matched against the database. To confirm the settings, theoperator clicks the operation button 407 with the pointer 41 placed onthe operation button 407. This causes the system accept the set checkitem conditions.

As described above, the GUI is provided with checkboxes and an operationbutton. It should be noted, however, that the structure of the GUIincluding the layout of the checkboxes and the operation button is notlimited to that shown in FIG. 4. Instead, any GUI that enables the userto specify check item conditions is acceptable.

FIG. 5 shows a received image 501, registered patient information 502,and check item conditions 503 set by the check item setting section 205.The received image 501 includes patient information as part of itsadditional information. Here, it is presumed that the patient IDincluded as additional information of the received image 501, which infact should be “12345”, has been registered as “15234” due to anincorrect operation of the operator at the time of image acquisition. Onthe other hand, a patient ID “15234” already exists as registeredpatient information.

In this case, it is determined in step S303 in FIG. 3 that the patientin question is not a new patient, and hence the flow proceeds to stepS304. In step S304, data matching is performed based on the check itemconditions. As indicated in the check item conditions 503, the patientname and the birth date are checked (matched) against the database, andthe sex is not checked. In other words, based on these check itemconditions, at least the patient name and the birth date must match withthe database to allow data registration processing to be completedsuccessfully.

In the example in FIG. 5, the patient name “Taro Yamada” with thepatient ID “15234” in the received image 501 does not match the patientname “Hanako Yamada” with the same patient ID in the registered patientinformation 502. Similarly, the birth date “1950/05/05” with the patientID “15234” in the received image 501 does not match the birth date“1970/06/06” with the same patient ID in the registered patientinformation 502. The sexes with the patient ID “15234”, which are “M” inthe received image 501 and “F” in the registered patient information502, do not match. However, this mismatch is not checked because the sexis excluded from the check item conditions. As a result, since thepatient name and the birth date do not satisfy the check itemconditions, the data registration processing fails and is terminated.

FIG. 6 shows a warning message displayed on the pickup control section202 if data registration terminates due to a failure. The warningmessage in FIG. 6 indicates that data registration has been terminatedbecause the patient name of the image transferred from the imagegeneration unit 101 does not match the patient name with the registeredpatient ID “15234”. With this message displayed on the image generationunit 101 when the image reception unit 103 terminates data registration,the operator is informed of possible entry of incorrect patientinformation at the time of image acquisition.

As described above, the first embodiment prevents an image from beingassociated with an incorrect patient resulting from entry of anincorrect patient ID when the image is registered.

Second Embodiment

In the first embodiment, images are transferred via the network 102 fromthe image generation unit 101. However, images stored in an off-linemedium, such as an MO (magneto-optical), a CD-ROM (compactdisk-read-only memory), a CD-R (CD-recordable), a CD-RW (CD-rewritable),a DVD-RAM (digital versatile disk-random-access memory), a DVD-ROM, aDVD-R, and a DVD-RW, can also be read out and subjected to data matchingat the time of data registration to prevent incorrect data registration.

FIG. 7 is a system block diagram depicting an example structureaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention. The dataregistration system according to this embodiment includes an imagerecording medium 701, an image reading section 702, an additionalinformation storing section 703, and an image storing unit 704. Theimage recording medium 701 is generally realized by a flexible disk, anMO, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a DVD-RAM, a DVD-ROM, a DVD-R, or aDVD-RW. The image recording medium 701 stores image data includingadditional information such as patient information and examinationinformation.

The image reading section 702 reads out an image recorded on the imagerecording medium 701. More specifically, the image reading section 702is a general-purpose computer including at least an input device such asa mouse and a keyboard and an output device such as a CRT or LCD.

The additional information storing section 703 saves additionalinformation of the image received in the image reading section 702. Theadditional information storing section 703 is realized by, for example,a database built in the image reading section 702. The image storingunit 704 saves the image read out by the image reading section 702. Theimage storing unit 704 is realized by, for example, a recording mediumsuch as a hard disk and a non-volatile memory provided in the imagereading section 702.

The function of the image reading section 702 in FIG. 7 corresponds tothat of the image reception unit 103 in FIG. 2 according to the firstembodiment.

Here, the series of processing from image reading to image registrationis the same as that in the first embodiment. If data registration isterminated because the check item conditions are not satisfied at thetime of data matching after image reading, a warning message isdisplayed on a display unit such as a CRT or an LCD connected to theimage reading section 702.

One example of a warning message displayed in this case is shown in FIG.8.

When images are to be read out from an off-line medium, the name of anyimage file whose registration has failed at the time of image readingand the cause of the failure can be displayed in the form of errorinformation in order to inform the user that image registration hasfailed.

In the example in FIG. 8, messages indicating that the patient name, thebirth date, and the sex do not match the database are displayed as errorinformation. However, any type of information, including a messageindicating that the third string of the patient name does not match, asdescribed below, is acceptable, as long as the user is informed of thecause of unsuccessful data registration.

Third Embodiment

In the first embodiment, the patient information is matched against thedatabase to check whether both the patient name and the birth datecompletely match the corresponding patient information in the database.A patient name, however, generally includes a given name and a familyname separated by a delimiter such as a space. In other words, theoperator enters a delimiter such as a space between the given name andthe family name when the patient is registered for image acquisition.

In this case, if the entire patient name, as one string, is matchedagainst the database, the result may indicate a matching failuredepending on the number of spaces between the given name and the familyname.

In other words, despite the given name and family name being correctindividually, matching of the entire patient name as a single string mayfail. If this is the case, the user feels inconvenient because the usermust pay attention to the delimiter and the number of delimiters whenentering a patient name, and must correct the patient name each timedata matching fails due to the delimiter. This problem can be solved byperforming the matching of patient name part by part.

Details of this part-by-part patient name matching will now bedescribed.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating part-by-part patient name matchingaccording to a third embodiment of the present invention.

A matching scheme 801 shows an example in which the entire patient nameis regarded as one character string to perform patient name matching. Inthe matching scheme 801, a character string 802 representing a firstpatient name has one space between the given name and the family name,whereas a character string 803 representing a second patient name hastwo spaces between the given name and the family name.

According to the matching scheme 801, when the first patient name 802 ismatched against the second patient name 803, the first patient name 802is determined to be different from the second patient name 803 due tothe difference in the number of spaces between the given name and thefamily name, resulting in a matching failure.

On the other hand, in a matching scheme 804, the given name and thefamily name are checked separately when patient name matching isperformed. A character string 805 represents a first character string ofa first patient name, and a character string 806 represents a firstcharacter string of a second patient name. In general, the characterstrings 805 and 806 each correspond to the given name of the patientname.

A character string 807 represents a second character string of the firstpatient name, and a character string 808 represents a second characterstring of the second patient name. In general, the character strings 807and 808 each correspond to the family name of the patient name.

As shown in FIG. 9, according to the matching scheme 804, the characterstring 805 is matched against the character string 806, and thecharacter string 807 is matched against the character string 808. Thismatching scheme 804 causes the matching result to be successfulregardless of the type of the delimiter or the number of delimiters usedbetween the given name and the family name.

As a result, the problem in which matching results in a failure due tothe delimiter (which functions just as a separating character that isnot an integral part of the patient name) is overcome.

According to the third embodiment, a space is used as a delimiterbetween the given name and the family name. The delimiter, however, isnot limited to a space, and may be a character, such as those shown inthe example in FIG. 10. These special characters are not used as part ofa typical person's name.

Fourth Embodiment

The third embodiment has been described by way of an example appropriatefor processing a typical Japanese name. Names other than Japanese names,for example, European names may have a middle name and/or a name suffix,such as Jr., and may need to be processed differently. According to afourth embodiment of the present invention, the third embodiment isextended to extract up to the third character string of a patient nameand to perform matching of the first to the third strings of the patientname part by part.

A middle name may be entered in the form of an initial in some cases.The system may be modified such that if the second character string ofan entered patient name includes only one character, the secondcharacter string is matched against the initial character of the secondcharacter string of the corresponding patient name in the database.

If the patient name includes three or more delimiters, the patient namemay be divided into four or more parts for matching. This may take along time to process the patient name, because the patient name needs tobe divided for matching each time a delimiter is encountered.

For this reason, in practice, the fourth and the subsequent characters,which are not so significant to perform matching of the patient name,can be integrated into the third character string. This prevents thepatient name from being divided into four or more parts, even if thepatient name contains three or more delimiters, and consequently theprocessing time can be reduced.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 11, the check-item-condition setting GUImay be designed to contain a checkbox 1007 for allowing the user toselect whether the third and subsequent characters are used for matchingof the patient name.

Furthermore, the GUI is designed such that with the patient namede-selected from additional information for matching, i.e., with thecheckbox 1004 unchecked the checkbox 1007 is automatically unchecked anddisabled, as shown with a checkbox 1009, so that the user cannot accessthe checkbox 1007. This technique prevents the user from specifyinginconsistent settings between the checkboxes 1004 and 1007.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating the processing when access to acheckbox is controlled on the check-item-condition setting GUI shown inFIG. 11 according to the fourth embodiment. This processing flow istriggered when the user checks or unchecks the checkbox 1004 for settingwhether the patient name is used for matching. In step S1301, the flowproceeds to step S1302 if the checkbox 1004 is checked or to step S1303if the checkbox 1004 is unchecked.

In step S1302, the checkbox 1007 for setting whether the third characterstring is used for matching of the patient name is enabled to allow theuser to access the checkbox 1007. In contrast, in step S1303, thecheckbox 1007 is unchecked, and the flow proceeds to step S1304. In stepS1304, the checkbox 1007 is disabled to prevent the user from accessingthe checkbox 1007.

Fifth Embodiment

The patient name may change due to marriage, divorce, or adoption. Insuch a case, with the matching schemes according to the first to thefourth embodiments, matching of the patient name results in a failurebecause the family name itself is changed, even if the delimiter isprocessed appropriately.

According to a fifth embodiment of the present invention, this problemis solved by exercising ingenuity in setting check item conditions, sothat a new family name can be registered without changing the existingfamily name.

The fifth embodiment will now be described in detail with reference toFIG. 12.

FIG. 12 is one example of a check-item-condition setting GUI foravoiding patient name matching for a patient whose name has beenchanged, while still preventing incorrect data registration resultingfrom entry of an incorrect patient ID.

First, in order to process a family name changed due to, for example,marriage, the patient name must be set as a required entry, i.e., thecheckbox 1101 must be checked. The checkbox 1102 for the birth date andthe checkbox 1103 for the sex can be checked or unchecked.

Here, if the patient name is specified as information to be checked,i.e., the checkbox 1104 for the patient name is checked, matching failsbecause the entered family name does not match the family name of thepatient already registered in the database. For this reason, thecheckbox 1104 for the patient name must be unchecked.

If neither the patient name nor the birth date is matched against thedatabase, entry of an incorrect patient ID causes the patient to beregistered as associated with another patient. To avoid this, thecheckbox 1105 for the birth date must be checked. The checkbox 1106 forthe sex may be checked or unchecked. Finally, the checkbox 1107 forallowing the patient name to be overwritten is checked to overwrite thepatient name in the database with the new family name. This causes thepatient to be registered with the new family name assigned as a resultof the marriage.

Although the GUI is provided with checkboxes and an operation button asshown in FIG. 12, it should be noted, however, that the structure of theGUI including the layout of the checkboxes and the operation button isnot limited to that shown in FIG. 12. Instead, any GUI that enables theuser to specify check item conditions is acceptable.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating the processing when access to acheckbox is controlled on the check-item-condition setting GUI shown inFIG. 12 according to the fifth embodiment. This processing flow istriggered when the operator checks or unchecks the checkbox 1101 forselecting whether to set the patient name as a required entry.

In step S1401, the processing flow proceeds to step S1402 if thecheckbox 1104 is checked or to step S1404 if the checkbox 1104 isunchecked. In step S1402, the processing flow proceeds to step S1404 ifthe checkbox 1104 for setting whether to match the patient name againstthe database is checked or to step S1403 if the checkbox 1104 isunchecked.

In step S1403, the checkbox 1107 for setting whether to overwrite thepatient name is enabled to allow the user to access the checkbox 1107.In contrast, in step S1404, the checkbox 1107 is unchecked, and the flowproceeds to step S1405. In step S1405, the checkbox 1107 is disabled toprevent the user from accessing the checkbox 1107.

Sixth Embodiment

The first to fifth embodiments have been described by way of an examplewhere the user is basically free to set check item conditions on theGUI. According to a sixth embodiment, in order to enable complicated andconsistent check item conditions to be set easily, access to checkboxesis controlled to enable or disable checkboxes appropriately.

The sixth embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 13Aand 13B. FIG. 13A shows one example of a check-item-condition settingGUI according to the sixth embodiment. FIG. 13B includes tables showingthe relationships between accessibility to certain check items andcombinations of settings of other check items.

Checkboxes in FIG. 13A and table columns in FIG. 13B denoted with thesame numbers indicate the same check items.

Checkboxes 1201A to 1203A in FIG. 13A are selected when thecorresponding items are to be set as required entries. That is, if allof these checkboxes are selected, the patient name (1201A), the birthdate (1202A), and the sex (1203A) must be entered to register thepatient. As shown in the table “required entries” in FIG. 13B, a totalof seven combinations of the patient name, birth date, and sex areavailable to specify required entries: three entries with each onerequiring one of the three types of data; three entries with eachrequiring a combination of two of the types of data; and one entryrequiring all three of the types of data.

The checkbox 1204A specifies whether to use information other than thepatient ID as a check item condition. The user can access the checkboxes1205A to 1207A only if the checkbox 1204A is checked. In other words,whether the checkboxes 1205A to 1207A can be accessed depends on whetherthe checkbox 1204A is checked or unchecked. This relationship is shownin FIG. 13B. More specifically, circles in the column 1204B of the table“check items” in FIG. 13B indicate that the checkbox 1204A is checked.In contrast, the first row without a circle in the column 1204B has allof the patient name, birth date, and sex unchecked.

As shown in the table “check items” in FIG. 13B, according to the sixthembodiment, it is necessary that at least one of the patient name andthe birth date be set as matched against the database. This is becauseif only the sex is used for matching of the patient information,patients with the same sex are regarded as the same patient. This isproblematic in that patients cannot be identified.

For this reason, if the user checks the checkbox 1204A, at least one ofthe checkbox 1205A and the checkbox 1206A must be checked. To apply thisrequirement automatically, the check-item-condition setting GUI may bedesigned such that if one of the checkbox 1205A and the checkbox 1206Ais unchecked, the other checkbox is automatically checked, andfurthermore, the user is prevented from accessing the checkbox once thecheckbox is checked.

The checkbox 1208A for setting whether to use the third character stringwhen the patient name is matched against the database, as shown in FIG.13B, can be checked only after the checkboxes 1204A and 1205A have beenchecked. As a result, it can be selected whether up to the second stringis used or the third string is included for the matching of the patientname.

Furthermore, FIG. 13A shows a checkbox 1209A for setting whether tooverwrite the patient name, allowing for a case where the patient nameis changed because of, for example, marriage. This checkbox 1209A, asshown in FIG. 13B, can be checked to allow the patient name to beoverwritten provided that the patient name is set as a required entry,matching is performed, and the patient name is not matched against thedatabase. In other words, the checkbox 1209A can be checked only if thecheckbox 1201A and the checkbox 1204A are checked and the checkbox 1205Ais unchecked.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating the processing when access tocheckboxes is controlled on the check-item-condition setting GUI shownin FIG. 13A according to the sixth embodiment. The GUI used with theprocessing shown in FIG. 16 is the same as the GUI shown in FIG. 13A,except that the checkboxes are assigned sequential numbers inparentheses to make the description of the flow in FIG. 16 understoodeasily. In other words, checkboxes 1204A-1209A in FIG. 13A are simplyreferred to as 4-9, respectively, in the flowchart of FIG. 16. The flowin FIG. 16 is triggered when the user checks or unchecks the checkbox(4). In step S1501, the processing flow proceeds to step S1504 if thecheckbox (4) is checked or to step S1502 if the checkbox (4) isunchecked.

In step S1502, checkboxes (5) to (9) are unchecked, and the flowproceeds to step S1503. In step S1503, the checkboxes (5) to (9) aredisabled to prevent the user from accessing the checkboxes (5) to (9).At this time, the user can access checkboxes (1) to (3) only. Thesetting of check item conditions ends when the user clicks the OKbutton.

In contrast, in step S1504, the checkboxes (5) to (8) are enabled, andthe flow proceeds to step S1505. In step S1505, the checkboxes (5) and(6) are automatically checked, and the flow proceeds to step S1506. Thisenables the patient name and the birth date to be automatically selectedfor matching by default when the user determines that the patientinformation is matched against the database.

In step S1506, the flow of processing proceeds to step S1509 if thecheckbox (5) is checked or to step S1507 if the checkbox (5) isunchecked. In step S1507, the checkbox (8) is unchecked, and the flowproceeds to step S1508. In step S1508, the checkboxes (6) and (8) aredisabled, and the flow proceeds to step S1513. Because of this, even ifthe patient name is deselected from matching, at least the birth date isincluded for matching when the patient information is matched againstthe database.

Furthermore, this prevents a contradictory situation in which the thirdstring of the patient name is used for matching while the patient nameitself is excluded from matching. In contrast, in step S1509, thecheckboxes (6) and (8) are enabled, and the flow proceeds to step S1510.In step S1510, the checkbox (9) is unchecked and disabled, and the flowproceeds to step S1511.

In step S1511, the flow proceeds to step S1513 if the checkbox (6) ischecked or to step S1512 if the checkbox (6) is unchecked. In stepS1512, the checked checkbox (5) is disabled, and the flow proceeds tostep S1513. Because of this, even if the birth date is deselected frommatching, at least the patient name is included for matching when thepatient information is matched against the database.

In step S1513, the flow proceeds to step S1515 if the checkbox (1) ischecked or to step S1514 if the checkbox (1) is unchecked. In stepS1514, the checkbox (9) is unchecked and disabled. In contrast, in stepS1515, the checkbox (9) is enabled. This prevents the database frombeing overwritten with a null patient name. In other words, the patientname in the database is prevented from being deleted.

A processing flow where access to checkboxes is controlled case by caseis not limited to that shown in FIG. 16. Any processing flow that allowsonly the combinations of settings shown in the tables in FIG. 13B isacceptable.

As described above, with the GUI that automatically controls access tocheckboxes, complicated but coherent condition settings can easily beachieved.

The present invention may also be realized by supplying a system or anapparatus with a recording medium storing software program code forrealizing the function of the X-ray image display unit according to thefirst embodiment, and then causing the computer (CPU (central processingunit) or MPU (micro-processing unit)) of the system or the apparatus toread and execute the supplied program code.

The present invention may also be realized by supplying a system or anapparatus with a recording medium storing software program code forrealizing the function of the present invention, and then causing thecomputer (CPU or MPU) of the system or the apparatus to read and executethe supplied program code.

In this case, the program code itself read from the recording mediumrealizes the function of the present invention.

The recording medium for supplying the program code includes, forexample, a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, amagneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a non-volatilememory card, and a ROM.

As described above, the function of the present invention is achievedwith the execution of the program code read by the computer. Inaddition, the function of the present invention may also be achieved by,for example, the OS (operating system) running on the computer thatperforms all or part of the processing according to the commands of theprogram code.

Furthermore, the function of the present invention may also be achievedsuch that the program code read from a recording medium is written to amemory provided in an expansion card disposed in the computer or anexpansion unit connected to the computer, and then, for example, the CPUprovided on the expansion card or the expansion unit performs all orpart of the processing based on commands in the program code.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, the invention isintended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangementsincluded within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The scopeof the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation soas to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures andfunctions.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing method for registeringadditional information of an input image in a storage unit, theinformation processing method comprising: reading a plurality ofadditional information items of the input image; matching the pluralityof additional information items of the input image with correspondingadditional information items registered in the storage unit; controllingwhether to register, in the storage unit, the input image based on aresult of the matching of additional information items; and displayingthe result of the matching when the plurality of additional informationitems of the input image does not match with the correspondingadditional information items registered in the storage unit.
 2. Theinformation processing method according to claim 1, wherein the resultof the matching includes a cause of a failure related to the matching.3. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein thefailure related to registration and the cause of the failure aredisplayed when the plurality of additional information items of theinput image does not match with the corresponding additional informationitems registered in the storage unit.
 4. The information processingmethod according to claim 1, wherein, the plurality of additionalinformation items are not registered if one or more items of theplurality of additional information items and corresponding items ofadditional information items do not match each other.
 5. The informationprocessing method according to claim 1, wherein the input image is amedical image and the plurality of additional information items includesat least two of a patient ID, a patient name, a patient sex, and apatient birth date.
 6. The information processing method according toclaim 5, wherein the corresponding additional information items includesat least one of patient ID, patient name, patient sex, and patient birthdate.
 7. The information processing method according to claim 6,wherein, one or more items of corresponding additional informationincludes the patient name, the patient name is divided into strings byat least one delimiter, and matching is performed string by string. 8.The information processing method according to claim 7, wherein, if thepatient name includes a middle name, the patient name is divided intothree strings by two delimiters, and the matching is performed string bystring.
 9. The information processing method according to claim 6,wherein, if the corresponding additional information items includes thepatient name; and if one or more of the plurality of additionalinformation items matches a first set of the corresponding additionalinformation items and the patient name associated with the plurality ofadditional information items does not match a patient name associatedwith the corresponding additional information items, then the patientname associated with the plurality of additional information itemsoverwrites the patient name associated with the corresponding additionalinformation items.
 10. The information processing method according toclaim 1, further comprising: restricting the corresponding additionalinformation items to the one or more items of corresponding additionalinformation items specified by a required check item conditions.
 11. Theinformation processing method according to claim 1, wherein a first setof the corresponding additional information items is all of thecorresponding additional information items that matches one or moreitems of the plurality of additional information items specified bymatching item conditions; if (a) all of one or more items of theplurality of additional information items specified by the matching itemconditions matches corresponding additional information, (b) theplurality of additional information items includes a second set ofinformation not specified by the matching item conditions, and (c) oneor more items of the second set of information do not matchcorresponding additional information items, then the second set ofinformation that do not match the corresponding additional informationitems overwrite the corresponding additional information items.
 12. Theinformation processing method according to claim 11, wherein the one ormore items of the second set of information overwrites the correspondingadditional information items associated with the first set ofpre-registered additional information if the second set of informationis specified by the required check item conditions; and the second setof information do not overwrite the corresponding additional informationitems if the second set of information is not specified by requiredcheck item conditions.
 13. The information processing method accordingto claim 11, further comprising: receiving an overwrite check itemcondition specified by the user; wherein the second set of informationoverwrites one or more items of the corresponding additional informationitems if one or more items of the second set of information is specifiedby required check item conditions and the overwrite check item conditionis in a first state; and wherein the second set of information does notoverwrite items of the first set of corresponding information if none ofthe items in the second set of information are specified by the requiredcheck item conditions or the overwrite check item condition is in asecond state.
 14. The information processing method according to claim11, wherein the second set of information is the patient name.
 15. Aninformation processing apparatus for registering additional informationof an input image in a storage unit, comprising: a processor; and amemory; wherein the processor is configured to read a plurality ofadditional information items of the input image; wherein the processoris configured to match the plurality of additional information items ofthe input image with corresponding additional information itemsregistered in the storage unit; wherein the processor is configured tocontrol whether to register, in the storage unit, the input image basedon a result of the matching of additional information items; and whereinthe processor is configured to send instructions to display the resultof the matching when the plurality of additional information items ofthe input image does not match with the corresponding additionalinformation items registered in the storage unit.